Empire Farm Days in Pompey, the North East’s largest agricultural show, cancelled for 2024

Pompey, NY — Empire Farm Days, an annual event in upstate New York that has grown into the largest agricultural trade show in the Northeast, has been canceled this year.

The event was scheduled to take place August 1-3 at Palladino Farms/Heritage Hill Brewhouse on Sweet Road in Pompey. The family-owned farm has hosted the event since 2021.

While the show’s future remains uncertain, Palladino Farms co-owner Dan Palladino said he will hold some of his related activities in August, including a truck and tractor race and a rodeo.

Palladino also said he would try to recreate the agricultural show in its entirety in the coming years if the current operators do not take it over. His goal would be to emphasize agricultural education and promotion.

“I think if we get approval, we could really use it to showcase agriculture, especially for our younger generations coming up,” Palladino told syracuse.com today.

Empire Farm Days dates back to 1931 and became a showcase for farm equipment in 1967. For many years, it was held at the Rodman Lott Farm in Seneca Falls.

It was purchased in 2021 by Lee Newspapers Inc., a Montgomery County-based publisher of agricultural publications, as its magazine Country people. A spokesperson for Lee and the show could not be reached for comment this week.

In a Facebook post, Palladino said the cost of putting on the show, including transporting a lot of heavy equipment, contributed to the decision to cancel Empire Farm Days.

“Unfortunately, the costs of hosting a large agricultural show, the cost of moving equipment, the consolidation of farms and the availability of information on the Internet have made it inevitable that the show will need to be recreated,” Palladino wrote. “We look forward to participating in this reenactment and continuing to honor and represent the future of agriculture in New York State on our farm.”

The three-day show typically attracts up to 400 exhibitors from around the world and up to 25,000 visitors to admire its equipment, services and agricultural products. They help fill hotel rooms, restaurants and more.

Empire Farm Days has announced its decision to move to Palladino Farms in 2021. Palladino Farms previously hosted arm days intermittently in the 1970s and 1980s.

At the time, Danny Liedka, president and CEO of Visit Syracuse, the local tourism development agency, estimated its annual economic impact on the region could be at least $2.5 million.

Palladino Farms, at 3149 Sweet Road, just south of Pratts Falls Road, is also home to Heritage Hill Brewhouse. The family has built a venue for the Farm Day show on 66 acres of land on a sloping hillside that offers stunning views, including downtown Syracuse and Onondaga Lake in the distance.

The truck and tractor pull, sponsored by Holbrook Heating, will be held Saturday, Aug. 3, and Sunday, Aug. 4, Dan Palladino said. The rodeo, which includes bull and bronco riding and other events, will be held at a date to be announced in August, he said.

Proceeds from the events will continue to support organizations such as Eastern Valley 4-H and the Fabius-Pompey and DeRuyter chapters of FFA (Future Farmers of America), Palladino said.

“It’s unfortunate that this happened,” Palladino said of the cancellation. “But I look forward to continuing the tradition of an event that helps celebrate agriculture and farm life.”

Don Cazentre writes for NYup.com, syracuse.com and The Post-Standard. Contact him at [email protected]or follow him on NYup.comon Twitter Or Facebook.